Eruera Tirikatene

Eruera Tirikatene (5 January 1895-11 January 1967) was the NZLP MP for Southern Maori from 3 August 1932 to 11 January 1967, succeeding Tuiti Makitanara and preceding Whetu Tirikatene-Sullivan.

Biography
Eruera Tirikatene was born in Kaiapoi (Canterbury), New Zealand in 1895. He served in World War I, and in 1920 was attracted by the Ratana movement, becoming a minister in the Ratana Church in 1939. In 1932, he was the first Ratana candidate to win a seat in the House of Representatives when he won a by-election for the Southern Maori electorate. He pressed for an end to longstanding Maori grievances, e.g. demanding equality in the workplace. As a result of the alliance between Ratana and the NZLP, he was Labor's chief policy advisor on Maori affairs from 1935 to 1958. As chairman of the Maori War Effort Organization from 1939 to 1945, he was a member of the War Cabinet. From 1967 to 1960, he was associate minister for Maori affairs. He died in 1967 while still in office as an MP.